New Perspectives on Data Driven Decision Making

Successful business is built on solid understanding of customers, and in order to stay in touch with what clients care most about, Mars Drinks has investigated this year’s trending topics on LinkedIn and has identified the three top issues over the last year. In this *three-part series, we identify them, explain them, and make sense of them in some new ways – and especially though a lens of how drinks matter.

One of the top issues is all about data-driven decision making. People want to know about big data, little data, data-oriented decisions, and how to use data to full advantage. And this is a concern that business leaders in all kinds of functions care about. The Internet of things and accessibility of data have made our world more analytical than ever. How do we make sense of all this? Based our 100% commitment to the workplace, we are Rethinking the Daily Grind related to the process of data-driven decision making. Here’s how you can too:

Explore What’s Important. The first step in making sense of data is to know what to pay attention to. In a world where were are deluged with information and data daily, real insights come from knowing what to investigate. One senior leader said he wanted to be ‘dropped into the middle of the information super-highway’ – this was his way of describing the coffee bar in his workplace Connecting over a workplace drink is a great way to listen to the organization, and understand the challenges, problems, and issues people face. This exploration of the problems and potential challenges is a critical first step in the data-driven decision making cycle. You have to know what to solve and what to explore in the first place.

Validate the Analysis. The danger of too much data and on relying too heavily on spreadsheets alone is that they can’t possibly provide human validation. This human viewpoint and the perspectives of people are important overlays to the data. Sharing a cup of tea or collaborating over the numbers in the work café provide the opportunity to review and validate sterile data with the lens of person-centered reality.

Share for Impact. Another aspect of data-driven decision making is sharing the data in a way that people can connect with it, understand it, and make sense of it relative to their work. Sometimes this happens in a conference room with charts, graphs, and power point slides, but the power of data is also in the way it becomes part of our conversations. When we share a drink, we also have the opportunity to share our knowledge of data in a way that makes it conversational and accessible to real humans, so they can in turn incorporate it into their work and their daily decision making.

From exploring what’s important to validating analysis and sharing data for impact, workplace beverages are important parts of the process. Let’s grab a cup of coffee!